Editorial: Spanking silliness

Thursday

Nov 29, 2007 at 12:01 AMNov 29, 2007 at 12:02 AM

The Massachusetts Legislature is undemocratic in many ways, but it holds on to one (note small "d") democratic tradition: As required by the state constitution, any citizen can write a proposed law, and his or her state representative is obliged to submit it for consideration. Whether you're the governor filing a major initiative or Joe Citizen with a pet peeve, your bill gets a number and - in theory if not in fact - equal standing under the Golden Dome.

The MetroWest Daily News

The Massachusetts Legislature is undemocratic in many ways, but it holds on to one (note small "d") democratic tradition: As required by the state constitution, any citizen can write a proposed law, and his or her state representative is obliged to submit it for consideration. Whether you're the governor filing a major initiative or Joe Citizen with a pet peeve, your bill gets a number and - in theory if not in fact - equal standing under the Golden Dome.

But that doesn't mean Joe Citizen's pet peeve is taken seriously, nor should it be. That's a distinction someone ought to explain to Fox News and its ilk.

The current example is a bill written by an Arlington nurse. Kathleen Wolf, 61, would like to make corporal punishment against the law in Massachusetts, as it already is in several European countries. Her bill was filed by Rep. Jay Kaufman, D-Lexington, but Kaufman's spokesman says the representative has taken no position on the bill.

That ought to be a hint. When the lead sponsor of a bill doesn't support it, the bill is going nowhere.

But that didn't stop the Boston Herald, which specializes in blowing things out of proportion, from running a story with the over-the-top headline "Bay State going slap-happy" - as if a statewide ban on parental spanking was an accomplished fact, not the fringe suggestion of single citizen.

Nor did the bill's non-existent prospects stop Fox News from spreading the Herald's story around the world. "Kids out of line? Spanking might not be an option in Massachusetts," its story blared. The folks at Fox jump at any opportunity to paint Massachusetts as the haunt of looney liberals. Local shock jocks on rock radio who wouldn't spend 30 seconds discussing serious legislation spent hours beating up on Ms. Wolf's bill.

For the record, we believe the Massachusetts Legislature should leave parenting to parents. The vast majority of parents can distinguish between spanking and child abuse, and we have laws, social workers and courts for those who cannot.

The vast majority of Bay State legislators agree, which is why this bill is unworthy of all the attention it has received. Too bad so few people care enough to get fired up over bills with a real impact on people's lives.